Worried callers take priority at Saint Thomas clinic

Clinic doesn't know whether to reopen

Oct. 17, 2012

Written by

Josh Brown

The Tennessean

The Nashville pain-management clinic at the center of the local fungal meningitis outbreak in recent weeks has been flooded with thousands of phone calls from worried patients, an executive with the center said Tuesday.

Workers at Saint Thomas Outpatient Neurosurgical Center identified and informed patients who might have gotten contaminated injections, said Scott Butler, an administrator for the clinic.

The center was one of three pain-management clinics in Tennessee that received contaminated steroid injections from the New England Compounding Center in Framingham, Mass.

“This is a bad event for us, and obviously it puts a scar on our doctors, our patients and our hospital,” Butler said.

The center started 12 years ago as a joint venture between Saint Thomas Network — the parent organization of Saint Thomas Hospital — and Howell Allen Clinic, a local group of neurosurgeons. Each own half of the limited liability corporation, whose clinic is located on the hospital’s ninth floor.

He said the clinic has had a long history of good outcomes from the injections.

“This surgery center provides great care to patients,” Butler said.

The center, which employs about 15 people, is managed both by Saint Thomas and Howell Allen, Butler said. Saint Thomas handles contracting, credentialing and finances, while Butler’s firm manages the hiring and workers of the clinic, he said.

Howell Allen Clinic, the group of physicians, operates 11 other centers in the region, according to its website. The practice, which is headed by Dr. Gregory Lanford, operated for many years under the name Neurological Surgeons P.C. but was renamed in 2007 to honor its founders, Dr. Everette Howell, Dr. Vaughn Allen and the late Dr. Verne Allen.

In a statement, Saint Thomas said the center is “separately licensed” from the hospital and run by Howell Allen personnel, “with support and assistance from each owner.”

In the wake of the meningitis infections, the center voluntarily closed its doors to patients to focus the response to the outbreak. Butler said no plans have been made on whether to reopen the clinic.

“We felt like there was no possible way for us to work while we’re getting these phone calls,” he said. “Essentially, our concern right now is making sure there’s doctors and nurses available to take phone calls.”